NORTHUMBRIA BLOOD BIKES
May 2019 - Please feel free to print, copy, save or forward this newsletter to increase awareness of our charity!
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
Northumbria Blood Bikes are thrilled to reveal the new motorbike purchased from the Tesco Bags of Help funding scheme. Colleagues at the store were given the opportunity to name the bike but as a mark of respect they gave this honour to the family of Chris Webster. Chris had been a keen fundraising volunteer for NBB, up until his health declined, and he sadly passed away earlier this year. Chris’ family chose to name the bike ‘Rush’ which had been his nickname. Joanne Reay, Community Champion for Tesco Durham Extra, said: “At Tesco in Durham we have been working with and supporting Northumbria Blood Bikes for a considerable period of time. We have built up a great relationship with them supporting their great cause for the community. We pride ourselves with the work and help we do so that we can really be at the heart of the community we serve. That is why we are so pleased we are able to support the Blood Bikes with a number of fundraising opportunities and more recently were able to provide them with £4000. As part of our Bags of Help scheme whereby any money raised through the sale of carrier bags, we give back to the community to help good causes such as this. We are absolutely delighted that this money has been used to purchaseProviding a further bike, to support the blood bikes going forward.” effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
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...Continued from previous page Kirsty Lawrence, Publicity Officer for Northumbria Blood Bikes, said: “Over the past few months we have had to retire a few of our beloved bikes so to have this new vehicle join our operational fleet is perfect timing. We really appreciate the funding provided by Tesco and customers who voted for us. It is lovely that the staff allowed the bike to be dedicated to Chris Webster and it is a fitting tribute to his commitment to our charity.�
Lots of you may have seen the news and social media reports concerning Warwickshire & Solihull Blood Bikes. This situation has prompted many of you to contact us with your concerns about how it will impact our Blood Bike volunteers at NBB. We would like to reassure our supporters that it is a local issue to WSBB only. We would like to thank you for showing your support of Warwickshire & Solihull Blood Bikes. Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
#BloodBikeFamily
Easter at the Bebby
Our friends at the Bebside Inn held their Easter weekend event and raised a staggering ÂŁ1420! We would like to say a huge thank you to all the staff at the Bebby, our fundraising volunteers, Providing effectivewho and timely transportation of essential blood and attended. medical products everyone donated prizes and all those who Registered Charity Number 1166689
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
We are always looking at new ways to support our work and making it easier for people to support us financially. We are embracing new technology in the form of these new devices. They are contactless donation terminals. We expect that they will be present at many of our and timely transportation of essential blood andone, medical forthcoming Providing events, effective and at static points in the region. If you see feelproducts free to try out the Registered Charity Number 1166689 technology, and help out our charity at the same time.
First Impressions By Deborah Owen: Nick Burton has asked me to provide some insight on my joining the NBB and I have to begin with an apology as until August 2018 I had no idea that the work carried out by Blood Bike Associations was going on behind the scenes all across the nation. I came across the NBB for the first time on social media when a call was put out by the NBB for volunteer riders, drivers and shift controllers. The bit that caught me was that I could help from home. I’d been volunteering for Northumbria Community Action as a coordinator for their community oil bulk buying scheme, but I had to give it up because my other half was diagnosed with the late stages of cancer. By the time I read the NBB’s advert my other half had died and I saw an opportunity where I could work on something completely different to what I did every day and be helping others at the same time. I began the journey by completing the membership form on the website where I also found out that there was an induction day the following weekend. I phoned up, found out where it was going to be held and booked my place. The induction meeting was very informative, Mike Thompson’s personal insights brought the seriousness of the work to light, I couldn’t believe how much was going on behind the scenes, my own could have benefitted and none of us knew. To go on to become a controller I had to attend a further workshop specifically for controllers, but not before attending a picnic where I got to have a cup of tea and a chat with some of the other members and the AGM where I got to meet and say hello to a few more members. The controller workshops are held every other month and as luck would have it there was one in September, but my car decided otherwise and I eventually managed to attend the meeting held in November. The in between time gave me a chance to read through the handbook as advised in the initial induction meeting which has helped me to understand what to expect on the scheduled runs from a controller’s perspective and the rules the riders and drivers are working to. The shift controller’s workshop explained what was expected of a controller and how to meet the expectations. I found the practice phone calls very helpful as they give an insight as to what to expect and how to extract the information needed from the call. After the meeting Debbie Paton sent along the NBB Shift Controller Next Steps email together with copies of the presentation slides. I’ve found the presentation slides to be invaluable especially the call category definitions and how to manage them.
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
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…Continued from previous page The Next Steps email took me to the Shift Controller Guide on the NBB website and in particular the instructions on how to download the Andromeda software. The Andromeda installation guide on the NBB website and the short You Tube video available on the NBB website was really helpful here as it paved the way as to what to expect. After completing the download we had to carry out a check to make sure all was working as is should. With a successful test behind me my next step was to observe an experienced shift controller at work. This turned out to be a massive learning curve! I met Debbie Paton and she took me though the steps of completing the rider and driver details on the paper work to get ready for the shift, then logging into Andromeda, completing the radio checks, then taking over the Hospital Line and that’s when being a shift controller hit home! It was all a bit of blur to start with, but with Debbie’s help I settled down into it and it all started to make sense. The next step was for Debbie to observe me but not before gathering some prizes for the oncoming Christmas Raffle, attending the Christmas Party to meet and chat with yet more fellow members. When I had been observing Debbie, the procedures of taking over the hospital line and job logging process for instance had seemed reasonable and straight forward, but I was very glad that Debbie was there to guide me again when it was my turn to carry out my first shift as I needed her prompts to get me through. She also showed me how to make the best use of the NBB website Shift Controllers Guide as an ongoing aid, as the next time I would controlling by myself. For me the next challenge was to learn where all the potential collection and delivery destinations were and their proximity to one another, a map and some pins helped here as did the NBB’s Time and Distance Matix. What really brought it to life though was the familiarisation drive with a BoB car run. All the details provided by Mervin Hilton as we did the run providing a driver’s viewpoint and actually visiting the destinations really helped put the process into perspective for me. Then it was time for me to do my first solo shift, although Debbie was just a phone call away if I needed her. I am immensely grateful to the riders and drivers who helped guide me through on the day as we managed to get all the work done within the time frames required. At the end I felt like I wanted it to go on as it had been good day. Each shift since then I have learnt a little more each time. I still make mistakes but one of the riders or drivers will keep me right and each mistake is another lesson learned. I’m best able to help on the Saturday shifts as I don’t have the worry of getting held up at work on a week day and not being able to get home on time but my intention is to get practice at covering other weekdays so that I would be able to jump in and take a shift if someone is needed at short notice. Nick asked me to write about my experience since joining which has also included me being a fashion model at a fundraising event. Anyone who’s ever met me would have lost the bet if asked about my potential as a fashion model so you can imagine that it was never something I ever expected to do but it was great fun. Whilst the sense of the seriousness of the task behind what the Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products NBB does is always present in my mind, doingCharity things I never imagined doing and enjoying doing Registered Number 1166689 them has been my underlying experience since being a member of the NBB.
Biddick Academy We would like to say a huge thank you to the Year 7 pupils at Biddick Academy who held a cake sale raising £200 (also thanks to the school who donated money to round it up). The pupils staged a play and organised their own presentation which was attended by volunteer rider, John Carroll, with Blood Bike ‘Dobbies’. They put a lot of work into it with the help of Mr Shell. It was great to see such young children showing a desire to raise money and awareness of NBB with their peers. Well done to all of those involved!
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
100 Celebrations! th
Mary Hannah Soulsby recently celebrated her 100th birthday. Her grandson, Frank Soulsby, completed his 100th shift volunteering for Northumbria Blood Bikes the day before her birthday. He proudly presented his Gran his gold recognition badge to mark the occasion. Frank had also set up an online fundraising account to mark the occasion which raised a phenomenal £532.50. Thanks to Community Relations Programme ATOS Matched funding who donated £200 to this. Many congratulations to them both!
Thanks to the customers and staff at Tesco Durham Extra for another warm welcome to the store. We raised £474.52 during our collection in the store. Thank you!
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service (CDDFRS) would like to extend a very warm welcome to Northumbria Blood Bikes, who are now operating out of Durham Fire Station. CDDFRS was approached by Northumbria Blood Bikes several months ago to see if they could store and operate one of their bikes out of the fire station, near Sniperley, Durham. Following work by both organisations, the charity started operating on a permanent basis earlier this year. Since 2016 the charity, set up to deliver lifesaving medical supplies across the region, has also operated from Spennymoor Fire Station, which has proved a great success. Chief Fire Officer Stuart Errington commented: “We are delighted to welcome such a vital service into another one of our fire stations. We have worked alongside Northumbria Blood Bikes in Spennymoor since 2016, so it makes sense to continue our support, this time in Durham City. I hope we can continue to work together with more sites across our service area. It makes sense to me for both organisations, who put the community at the heart of everything they do, to support each other into the future.� Kirsty Lawrence, Northumbria Blood Bikes Publicity Officer, said: "As charity run solely by volunteers we appreciate the warm welcome we have received by both Sniperley and Spennymoor Fire Station teams. Our working partnership with other organisations across the North East is crucial to our operational Having different bases acrossproducts our region allows our Providing effective and timelyservice. transportation of essential blood and medical Registered Charity Number 1166689 volunteers the choice of somewhere closer to their home enabling them more opportunities to volunteer. We look forward to the future in our newest base."
Northumbria Egg Run
Photographs from both egg runs are available on our Flickr account. Totals raised will be announced in the next newsletter. Durham Egg Run
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
Benidorm or Bust Challenge Message from our volunteer Steven and Sam Law:
Well it’s finally here , myself and my son leave to take part in the Benidorm or Bust Challenge again on the 14th of May leaving the northeast east and meeting up in Dover with 150 other cars to drive down to Benidorm taking part in fun Challenges on the way there. The car we will be taking is a 15 year old Ford Focus which has needed a bit of work doing to make it drivable (thanks to Croxdale Fast Fit for supporting us again, sorry about the bill) but it’s finished now and it’s ready for the challenge. We will be doing about 1500 miles depending on how lost we get and hopefully arriving on May 18th having raised funds and awareness for our charity. There is still time for anyone who would like to sponsor our challenge as ever penny raised goes to our charity as all expenses are covered by myself and my son. Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products We will hopefully make it in time Registered for the party on the Saturday night before flying home on the Charity Number 1166689 Monday. Watch out for updates on Facebook and keep your fingers crossed for us.
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
360 Challenge 2019 We would like to say a huge well done and thank you to everyone who took part in the #360Challenge. Unfortunately the weather didn't hold out but hopefully everyone had a great day of riding regardless. We have already been discussing ideas for next year's event.
We have roughly calculated the money raised at just over ÂŁ5,000 but we know that there's some more sponsorship to come in.
Special thanks to Goosepool House & CafĂŠ and Earl Of Zetland for allowing us to use their venues and supporting our event. Photographs can be found on our Flickr account.
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689
FUTURE EVENTS FOR YOUR DIARY: Lots of things happening, and we need your help to support them! If you can help, even if only for a couple of hours, please contact us‌.information is at the bottom of this page. NBB members can register their attendance for most of these events on our website (login required). May Saturday
11
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May
Tesco Sunderland Extra 0900-1800
May
Sunday
12
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Kirkley Hall Countryside Fair 0930-1600
May
Wednesday
15
th
Morpeth Mayor Making 1730-1930
May
May
May
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
17
th
May Saturday
18
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18
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19
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Saturday
18
th
Induction & Controller Workshop 0900-1230 & 1300-1600
Poplar Tree Garden Centre 0900-1700
Consett Methodist Church Coffee Morning 0930-1130
May Saturday
19
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NAM Open Day 0930-1600
May
May
May
Saturday
Saturday
Sunday
25
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May Sunday
26th
M&S Arnison Centre 0900-1700 Hedworthfield Community Association Family Fun Day 1100-1500
25th May
26th
27th
May
Durham Classic & Custom Show 1100-1500
Haydon Bridge Northumberland Day 1330-1730
Sunday
May Monday
26th
Friday
31st
Morpeth Party in the Park 0930-1800
Uniformed Services Day Durham City Centre 0930-1630
www.northumbriabloodbikes.org.uk
FUNDRAISING HOTLINE:
facebook.com/northumbriabloodbikes
0191 364 3113
twitter.com/northumbriabb linkedin.com/company/2866951
- for any opportunities to increase our funding through sponsorship, locations for collecting tins, supermarket events etc‌
Providing effective and timely transportation of essential blood and medical products Registered Charity Number 1166689